Archive for July, 2007

It’s super hot here in CowTown.Â It’s so hot that the cows around Calgary are giving evaporated milk,…and the farmers are feeding the chickens crushed ice so that they don’t lay hardboiled eggs.Â I must say it is a welcomed heat wave,…I’d much prefer it than the alternative extreme.

I just spoke with GR from Sports Quest Direct today – I just love talking to him, as every time I do, I’llÂ learn another valuable piece of information.Â Life long learning isÂ what it’s all about – right?!Â He is simply the best source of informationÂ with regards to understanding nutritional demandsÂ for distance athletes.Â This man has helped many of the best Ironman athletes in the world,…quite frankly, he knows a TON!Â For those athletesÂ who have yet to dial in their nutrition for Ironman Canada coming up, I strongly recommend you order and try out some of the products Sports Quest Direct (if in USA www.sportsquestdirect.com, Canada www.carbopro.ca) has to offer.Â

My nutrition plan first and foremost involves eating whole, healthy, organic (if possible) foods from aÂ variety of sources.Â Being cognisant of trying to consume approximately 100g of protein/dayÂ consuming many small meals throughout the day.

I can’t stress enough how important it is to consume good quality whole foods.Â In addition to a normal healthy diet, I consume RECOVER (3pills,3x/day, everyday, and added to my waterbottles in races), VANTAGE (particularly before intense training, and starting 3 days out from races), INTERPHASE (everyday with my smoothy), MOTIVATOR (for intense training/long training, and racing), CARBOPRO1200 (in training, racing), CARBOPRO (racing, and carboloading before races also available at www.speedtheory.ca),Â THERMOLYTE (salt for hot days, in training and racing), and CALPLEX (calcium 3-4 tablets before bed).

It was an honour to be interviewed for the July-August Impact magazine’s 25th Ironman Canada edition. I find it quite flattering to be recognized in such a way.

As with any interview, particularly when I’m talking, information can sometimes not be communicated the best. As far as my quote for my Ironman tip being: “eat a lot of protein early on”,…I certainly didn’t mean this how it came out. I would never endorse consuming ANY protein in an Ironman race. Perhaps what I meant to say is that people often are lacking a strong/quality protein sources in their diets,…so nutritionally, I would recommend Ironman athletes to make sure they met their protein quota for their daily needs. In training, Ironman athletes should consider consuming a quality protein source, commencing first thing in the morning.

Things are really starting to come together. It has been about 1 year since I’ve been coached by Peter Reid,…now I can really see the difference in myself while training under his consistent guidance and methodical training plan.

A few weeks ago, I PB’ed by 1min37sec over a 40km time trial – a course that I’ve done several times to gauge fitness over the last 3 years. My previous PB was set close to a time when I recorded a 52:07 on a different 40km course. It was just last night that I think I had my best ride ever,…I was on an absolute high – I was just LOVING riding, and cruising faster than ever while keeping in aerobic zones.

I’m very happy with my overall energy levels and sense of wellness. I’m super healthy, and have no pains or anything remotely that feels like an injury – largely I must give thanks to chiropractic from co-worker Dr. Aaron Nardella at Balanced Health and Sports Therapy.

This morning, I had a 2hour run to do,…I ended up running while cheering on other runners in the Calgary Stampede road races. It was such a great way to spend a long run – I found it so easy to keep in zone, and tap into the energy from the runners and race atmosphere.